Ao quietly activated his Sharingan as Orochimaru unrolled the scroll, committing everything written on it to memory.
He immediately understood the purpose of the kunai Senju Tobirama had left behind.
He also understood the final experiment Senju Tobirama had worked on: the forbidden Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu manuscript in Orochimaru's hands.
Judging by the manuscript, the jutsu was still incomplete.
But judging by the kunai and Orochimaru's reaction, Senju Tobirama had probably already completed it.
The fact that he hadn't used it in the Ninja World War had clearly shaken Orochimaru.
Ao noticed that the scroll contained a great deal of research into the soul, annotated by Senju Tobirama.
The most crucial part—the Soul Recall Jutsu—was based on the Uzumaki Clan's forbidden Dead Demon Consuming Seal!
This genius researcher, Senju Tobirama, had found inspiration in the Contract Scroll the Uzumaki Clan had signed with the Death God. He had devised a soul technique that connected to the Pure Land and summoned souls back.
And that was only the most basic foundation of the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu.
Even more impressive, he had created a technique to control the souls reincarnated through it, allowing him to make the dead fight for him...
But if the jutsu had already been perfected, why had Senju Tobirama abandoned it?
Ao was puzzled.
Perhaps Senju Tobirama had discovered something even more hidden that forced him to give up the research...
Could he have summoned his older brother, Senju Hashirama, only to get beaten up?
Was that why he'd given up on perfecting the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu?
Ao couldn't help imagining the scene, and the corners of his mouth curled up.
Senju Hashirama, long dead, suddenly came back to life and saw his younger brother going astray with his research. He moved him with brotherly love, then released the Impure World Reincarnation and returned to the Pure Land...
Perhaps only that could have made Senju Tobirama abandon his research into the forbidden jutsu.
In the supposedly "incomplete" Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu, Ao found another passage concerning souls that mentioned the "Pure Land."
This was the first time he'd seen information confirming that the Pure Land existed.
Senju Tobirama really was brilliant!
Ao could believe that Senju Tobirama had already sensed the Pure Land while he was alive—or even visited it.
After all, how else could Senju Tobirama have found a way to summon the souls of the dead back from the Pure Land and create the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu?
Now that he'd read all the information on the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu, Ao had finally filled in the biggest gap in his understanding of the Uzumaki Clan's Contract Scroll: why had the original Death God made such an almost equal contract with the Uzumaki Clan?
The contract placed no restrictions on the Death God at all. It was practically working for the Uzumaki Clan for free, with just one person's soul as payment each time.
For example, Namikaze Minato's soul was nothing compared to the Nine-Tails' soul.
Yet the Death God had still acted without hesitation.
It was far more accommodating than Manda, the apparent leader of Ryūchi Cave's Hidden Village.
Manda demanded a hundred sacrifices each time before he'd do anything for Orochimaru.
Judging by his looks, he didn't seem like a kind soul.
"Perhaps the Death God wasn't that powerful to begin with..."
"Through this contract, the Uzumaki Clan gradually nurtured the Death God."
"The Uzumaki Clan worshipped the Death God of the Dead Demon Consuming Seal as their guardian deity... letting him grow little by little until he became a god of the soul, perhaps even threatening Old Man Six Paths' position in the Pure Land."
"No wonder they were the first clan to be wiped out. The Uzumaki Clan's research was too far ahead of its time."
"I wonder if that miserly Old Man Six Paths had anything to do with it."
Ao had a vague feeling that he might have guessed part of the truth behind the Uzumaki Clan's destruction.
It might well have had something to do with the Death God of the Dead Demon Consuming Seal.
The Uzumaki Clan had been Konoha's closest ally, yet Konoha had let them perish without lifting a finger. It was far too strange.
After all, Uzumaki Mito, the First's wife, was still alive when the Uzumaki Clan was wiped out.
Senju Tobirama also knew the Flying Thunder God Technique. With Konoha's strength at the time, saving the Uzumaki Clan wouldn't have been difficult.
Unless there was some reason Senju Tobirama had no choice but to stand by—and even had Uzumaki Mito's tacit approval.
"Let's go. It's getting late. Danzo may have figured it out by now..."
Orochimaru slipped the kunai into his sleeve and spoke calmly.
He didn't show the slightest embarrassment at pocketing his disciple's spoils. He acted as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world, as casually as drinking water.
"Yes, sensei!"
Ao lowered his head in reply, quickly gathered a few items from the laboratory shelves, and followed Orochimaru out.
He said nothing more.
They walked out of the laboratory one after the other and returned to the hall. Orochimaru canceled the Summoning Technique, and the giant snake returned to Ryūchi Cave.
"Let's go. See you in Ryūchi Cave!"
Orochimaru formed a hand seal, then turned to Uchiha Ao. He was very pleased with his performance.
He didn't ask too many questions, was careful in his work, and had ideas of his own.
Ao was becoming more and more to his liking.
Ao nodded, faintly sensing Zuijinji calling for him.
Once he accepted the call,
a mysterious force reached out from the void. He focused all his mental strength on sensing where it came from.
Suddenly, the world spun around him.
A strange force enveloped his body, and he began to... disintegrate in an extraordinary way?
No... what was happening...?
Before Ao could figure it out, everything went black, and he lost consciousness.
When he came to again, he was standing in the clearing before the White Snake Sage's temple.
Zuijinji looked at him with concern.
Reverse Summoning Jutsu—
Interesting.
Ao's eyes lit up.
He silently savored the sensation he'd just experienced.
He committed it firmly to memory.
Perhaps this was the secret of Space-Time Ninjutsu.
"Lord Orochimaru is waiting for you at his residence."
Zuijinji replied respectfully.
After receiving the White Snake Sage's inheritance, Ao's standing in Ryūchi Cave had clearly risen. He was now the third most important figure there, behind only the White Snake Sage and Orochimaru.
All Three Princesses had become much more respectful toward him.
"I understand."
Ao replied.
He knew where Orochimaru lived: in a cave in Ryūchi Cave, where he'd set up a complete array of research equipment.
He must have prepared it a long time ago.
But there were no signs that it had been used.
Everything was brand-new.
When Ao reached the cave entrance, he spotted Manda. The giant snake was coiled up at Orochimaru's doorstep, asleep with his eyes closed like a guard dog.
"Who's there?"
Manda sensed someone watching and suddenly raised his head. His pale yellow, slit-pupil eyes fixed on Uchiha Ao.
The Sage's aura...
One of Orochimaru's people?
I can't let this brat get above me.
"So you're the apprentice Orochimaru took in? You don't look like much of a thre—ugh!"
Manda had been about to throw his weight around and put Uchiha Ao in his place when he suddenly sensed something amiss. A needle-sharp pain surged through his head.
When he raised his head again, Uchiha Ao had already left.
The image of Ao's scarlet Three-Tomoe Sharingan still lingered in his mind.
Uchiha monsters... What a disgusting genjutsu!
Inside Orochimaru's residence,
Ao pushed open the door and saw Orochimaru sitting in a chair, absorbed in a scroll.
"You're back. You've improved quite a bit. You've even mastered Wood Release..."
"I have a mission for you. I was going to make the trip myself, but this time I made quite a haul, and you've grown stronger. I'll leave it to you."
"Things will get a little chaotic in Kirigakure soon. Go there for me and bring back a few promising Kekkei Genkai candidates."
"This mission carries some risk. Are you willing to make the trip for me, Ao-kun...?"
Orochimaru sensed someone enter, raised his head, and set aside the materials on the Impure World Reincarnation Jutsu as he spoke.
It sounded like a request, but there was no room to refuse.
After hearing him out, Uchiha Ao nodded without hesitation.
He was just an assistant researcher. When the boss told him to do something, he did it.
He was already used to this kind of life.
"Good. I'll put together the details of the mission and give them to you later. For now, go find a summoning beast partner. Manda has plenty of promising candidates. Take your time and choose one."
Orochimaru rambled on for a few moments, never taking his eyes off the scroll.
He'd barely returned before throwing himself into another round of forbidden-jutsu research.
Even a workaholic couldn't match Orochimaru's dedication.
Once he finished speaking, he paid Uchiha Ao no further attention, completely absorbed in the Impure World Reincarnation materials.
This forbidden jutsu had given him a wealth of inspiration for his research into immortality. He had so many ideas he wanted to put into practice that he'd already forgotten to properly train his apprentice.
He'd completely forgotten his original plan to take Uchiha Ao to Kirigakure for some practical experience.
Before you continue